Avengers Tower
by HonoraryAvenger
Summary: In a Tower with a large amount of crazy people trying to live under one roof, insane situations are bound to happen. But how much damage could one team of superheroes do? This is the sequel to Eagle. You will need to read that story first. TeamFic. Rated M for language and eventual sexual situations.
1. Chapter 1

**Here it is! The start of the sequel to Eagle! For those of you who are here and have not read Eagle, read that first. There are new characters and situations that are conducive to that universe. **

**Like I said at the end of Eagel, this story will be a fluffy team story. I may have a few missions but for the most part it'll be about the life in the tower with all of these crazy people trying to live under one roof. **

**I am working on one other story at the same time (If you like Harry Potter go check it out on my profile. It's a Harry Potter/Avengers crossover) so I will probably only post once a week. I like my chapters to average about 2500-3000 words a chapter. **

**I am going to do an all-inclusive disclaimer because I always forget to post one in the beginning of each chapter. So this covers each of them.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own scatterbrained ideas and plots. Marvel is my master.**

* * *

Clint's feet pounded against the floor, his breath ragged; sweat pouring into his eyes. He had too much riding on this to give up now.

His legs burned: 30 more seconds. He looked over his shoulder. A little boy was counting on him.

15 seconds. 10 seconds. 5 seconds. He threw his hands up in triumph.

"You're a damn cheater!"

Clint collapsed against the machine, trying to catch his breath. "Sorry, Tony. I can't help it if I'm just the better dancer."

Tony kicked him before stepping off of the Dance, Dance Revolution platform. He picked up the squealing boy.

"You've been against me from the start." He accused.

James kissed his cheek. "Nuh uh, Uncle Tony."

Clint winked at him from behind Tony's back. He checked his watch and got to his feet. "Alright, buddy. It's bed time."

"Oh, Uncle Clint!" James whined. "Please can I stay up for Mommy and Daddy?" He put on his best pouting face.

Tony took one look at his face and also pouted. "Clint, just look at how cute he is."

Clint sighed. Fact of the matter was that neither of them could say no to their little nephew. "Fine, but you are going to bed before your parents get back. They'd kill us if they knew you were still awake. You can stay up for another half an hour."

"Yay!" James wiggled out of Tony's arms and ran to the elevator. "Can we go bug Auntie Pepper?"

"Not if you value your life, kid." Tony followed him. "But I've been told that I don't, so let's go."

Clint followed them, shaking his head.

They found Pepper in her office, on a phone call. James climbed up onto her lap and she hugged him.

"Mr. Banks, this is no longer up for discussion…Well I'm sorry you feel that way… Mr. Stark's Iron Man suit is not for sale nor will it ever be… Good day." She hung up the phone and kissed James on the top of the head.

"It's been 5 years since I created it. If I haven't sold it by now…" Tony said. "They're all a bunch of money hungry vultures."

"Can I help you gentlemen? I am trying to get this presentation done for tomorrow." Pepper asked them.

"What presentation?" Tony asked.

Pepper closed her eyes in exasperation. "The presentation for the Secretary of Defense. War Machine? Rhodey? Does none of this ring a bell?"

"Did you tell me while I was in my lab?" Pepper narrowed her eyes. "Pep, we've been together for ten years. How do you not know this by now?"

James kissed her cheek. "I just wanted to say I love you, Auntie Pepper. I'm sorry we bugged you."

"You could never bug me, James." She kissed his forehead. "Your Uncle Tony though, you should probably get him somewhere safe."

James hopped off her lap. He grabbed an affronted Tony's and led him out of the office.

"Clint," Pepper stopped him. "JARVIS informed me that Lillian left base a few minutes ago. She should be arriving home soon."

"Thanks. I'll head up to the roof." He let Tony and James know where he was headed and rode the elevator up.

He stepped out onto the roof just as she hopped out of the helicopter.

"Welcome home." He nodded to her.

"Thanks," She smiled. "It's good to be home."

He took her bag. "How'd it go?"

"Oh you know, I got all dressed up, brownnosed a few diplomats, prevented World War 3: the usual." The pair walked towards the elevator. "Who knew working as a SHIELD ambassador would actually be enjoyable?"

"Where does Fury have you going next?"

"I'm off for a month and then a gala in Rome to help along a peace deal with the Mafioso." Lillian told him. "Fury wants me to take someone as my date as an added precaution. I'm not sure who I want to ask yet. Maybe James will agree to come with me." She smirked deviously.

There was a wanton sexual tension between the two SHIELD agents since Lillian moved in but their relationship only consisted of teasing and close proximity.

Clint leaned around her to press the floor button on the elevator and his arm brushed her breast. She shuddered. He smirked and the elevator began to move.

The second the door opened, Lillian opened her arms to a flying little boy. She hugged him tight. "My little James; I've missed you the most."

"Auntie Lily, I'm so glad you're home!" James was the only person Lillian allowed to call her Lily.

"I'm glad to be home. Where are your parents?"

"Mommy and Daddy went out on a date." James scrunched up his face. "Uncle Clint and Uncle Tony let me stay up late!"

"Sell out." Clint muttered.

"Come on, James. Let's get you to bed before you parents come home." She glared at the two men as she entered the elevator with James in her arms.

"We're dead men." Tony moaned. "She's gonna tell Steve and then Natasha's going to get involved and…"

"Tony, seriously, shut up." Clint pinched the bridge of his nose.

Tony plopped himself on the couch. He picked up his Xbox controller and held it out to Clint. "Call of Duty?"

"Why they trusted you two to babysit, is beside me." Lillian said ten minutes later.

"We were their only option." Clint told her, his eyes fixated on the screen.

"No, no, no!" Tony shouted as Clint gunned him down. "Fucking snipers."

"Natasha and Bruce have been holed up in the lab for days, Pepper is in the office, and Thor hasn't returned from Asgard with Jane yet." Clint continued.

"Oh good, I've been wanting to meet Jane." Lillian sat next to Tony on the couch. She reached for his controller and paused the game. "I've been gone for two weeks and home for ten minutes. How about a conversation?"

"My birthday is in a few days." Tony said cheerily. Clint groaned audibly behind him.

"Do not get him started on his damn birthday."

But it was too late. Tony launched into an elaborate plan on how he wanted to celebrate his special day. "And then, after the Chinese dragon, I want to fly over…."

"I changed my mind. Go back to playing your game." Lillian stood up.

Amelia and Steve stepped out of the elevator, holding hands. "Oh, Lillian's home!"

Amelia strode forward and gave her best friend a hug. "I'm so happy you're home. Natasha and Pepper have been so busy that Tony has been almost unbearable. Have you heard his birthday plans yet?"

"Unfortunately."

"For people who live in MY tower, you sure are nasty to me." Tony crossed his arms.

Clint clapped him on the back. "Unfortunately Tony, your name may be on the deed, but the women rule this tower."

"Yeah, yeah." He waved him off. "James is sleeping and I am going to drag Pepper out of the office and to bed. Goodnight."

Steve stopped him. "Thanks for watching James, Tony. We appreciate it. You too, Clint."

"And the tower is still standing so that's a good sign." Amelia teased.

Tony nodded but whispered to Clint: "Little do they know I have a suit waiting for when he's a bit older." He grinned and walked off, humming happy birthday.

"We're going to head to bed, as well." Steve said. "I want to forget that movie."

"I told you that seeing a movie on World War 2 was a bad idea." Amelia pointed out.

"They didn't get a single thing correct." Steve shook his head and the couple walked off.

Lillian and Clint were alone in the living room.

"Want some pancakes?" Clint asked after a minute of silence. Lillian's stomach growled. Just the thought of Clint's pancakes made mouth water.

He chuckled and walked into the kitchen to make his batter. Lillian sat at the island and watched him work. Even something as simple as making pancakes had his muscles rippling beneath his t-shirt.

She had been living in the tower for two months and he had yet to make an actual move on her. The signs were definitely there but there was no acting upon them. Natasha told her to just go up to him and kiss him and that he was probably just being stupid because she was Phil's sister. Maybe she was old fashioned but she wanted him to be the initiator.

He caught her eye. "Grab the milk for me?" She walked to the fridge and reached in. As she turned around, Clint was in her face. She gasped lightly as his fingers brushed down her arm and took the milk. "Thanks." He breathed before going back to the skillet.

Lillian stayed at the fridge, breathing heavily. "Tease," She grumbled.

Clint chuckled. Bruce walked into the kitchen with Natasha following close behind.

"Welcome back to the land of the living!" Clint said dramatically. "Did you vampires get your work done?"

"Put some pancakes on a plate and shut up." Natasha growled. They both sat at the island and Lillian joined them.

"No reason to be cranky." Clint said as he flipped a pancake on each plate.

"We're getting closer." Bruce muttered. "I've been able to get through to the other guy and control him for a few minutes but then he goes insane again."

"Doc, you need a break." Clint said seriously. He pointed his spatula at him. "In fact, we all need a vacation. And who better to fund said vacation?"

"Clint, you sure do love spending Tony's money." Lillian said.

"Why spend my own when he has plenty of it to share?" He shrugged.

"As fantastic as a vacation sounds, we really need to finish our research." Bruce said.

"I agree with Clint." Natasha said. "We need a break, Bruce. The research isn't going anywhere."

"I knew I kept you around for something." He flipped another pancake on her plate. "Here's a reward." He dodged the fork that was thrown at his head. "Now that wasn't very nice."

"Fine," Bruce stood. "Thanks for the pancakes, Clint. I'm going to bed."

"He's angry." Lillian said when he walked off.

"He's always angry." Clint said mysteriously. Both women shot deathly glares at him. He put his hands up in surrender.

"He's only frustrated." Natasha clarified. "We've been at it for weeks now and he feels like we aren't getting any closer to the solution."

"You two have been holed up in that lab for hours on end. No one has actually seen your faces in a few days." Clint said.

"He's really determined to find a way to control the Hulk. Every mission one of us ends up getting flung around by it. Bruce is this close to leaving the team." Natasha held her forefinger and thumb a mere centimeter apart.

Lillian yawned. "I'm exhausted. Thank you for dinner, Clint. It was delicious as always." She waved goodbye to Natasha and walked towards the elevator.

As soon as the door closed, Natasha opened her mouth. "Are you going to continue to be a fucking idiot?"

Clint was taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"I may be emotionless and scarred, but I can tell when two people are infatuated with each other."

"We're just friends, Tasha." Clint began to put the ingredients away.

Natasha laughed in his face. "I can cut the sexual tension between you with a knife. Everybody has been feeling it for months. All of the sexually charged arguing? Even James asked if Uncle Clint and Aunt Lily were going to kiss and make up."

Clint rested his forearms on the counter and leaned forward. "She's Phil's sister."

"That's not stopping you from invading her personal space." She accused. "Don't think I miss a thing, Barton. I saw what happened when we walked in. You want her just as bad as she wants you."

"It's not even just that, Natasha. I've wanted you before but never like this. I'm not sure how to even begin to dissect the way I'm feeling." He ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

Natasha furrowed her brow. "And that is where my good advice ends for the night." She stood. "Actually, one more thing: I would talk to Steve about what you're feeling. He'd be the most likely to know. Goodnight, Clint."

"Goodnight, Tasha." She left him in the kitchen to think over what she had said.

* * *

The next morning, Clint was up bright and early and stood on the roof watching the sun rise. Normally, Lillian would join him but she was working out with Natasha to get over her jetlag.

He sipped his coffee when JARVIS alerted him that Tony was awake and on a rampage.

Clint made it back into the kitchen before Tony. He pulled out another mug and filled it with coffee. As soon as Tony stormed in, Clint calmly handed it to him.

He took a sip and nearly spit it out. "What the hell is this sludge?"

"It's black coffee, Tony. Pepper's orders. She needs you to be coherent through the meeting and not on a sugar rush like most days when you pour the entire box in your coffee."

"This is disgusting." Tony said looking down into the cup. "How do you people drink this every day?"

Lillian and Natasha walked in from the gym and headed straight to the coffee pot.

"Yum, coffee." Lillian held it close to her face and smelled it.

Clint barely ignored Tony's revolted face each time he tried to take a sip. He didn't want to laugh in the poor man's face as he continued to stick his tongue out. "Good work out?" He asked the ladies.

"Natasha kicked my ass, as usual." Lillian said. "What's on the agenda today?"

"I can't." Clint couldn't hold back the laughter as he pulled the cup from Tony's hand. "Add as much sugar as you would like. I can't watch this anymore." He turned back to Lillian. "I have to go up to SHIELD and do the devil's homework." She looked at him confused.

"Paperwork," Natasha clarified. "He hates doing paperwork."

"I just don't see the necessity behind it. Can't they just hire someone to do it for me?"

"Pepper does all of mine for me." Tony said, finally able to drink his coffee.

"I heard that Pepper doesn't think you do enough with the company." Clint said. Natasha shot him a look. "Be careful, she may be thinking about making your work more. Maybe taking away your vacation days."

"It's my company!" Tony said, affronted. "She can't take my vacation days!"

"She's the CEO, Tony, and your wife. She can do whatever she likes."

"Well then I declare we are going on vacation. All of us." Tony said. "Thinks she can take away Tony Starks' vacation days…" He grumbled as he stomped off.

Lillian's jaw dropped. "How did that work?"

Clint tipped his mug to her and winked.

* * *

**Tony is so easy to manipulate. Clint has it down to a science. **

**Anywho, I hope you all enjooy this story as much as I'm going to enjoy writing it. Clint and Tony are my favortie characters to write, especially when they interact with each other. We'll have some Thor and Jane in the next chapter.**

**Please Review and go check out my other story!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi Everybody! I'm not sure if you all remember me but I am Honorary Avenger. I figured since I have been gone for so long I would have to give you a refresher. On that note, I am so sorry I have neglected you. I have a thousand excuses but I'm sure you won't want to hear them. I wish I could say this was a long chapter to make up for it but mainly I just didn't want to leave you with nothing any longer. So, here is a short one to hold you over until I can get another one out later this week.**

**Can I say I'm sorry again?**

* * *

Lillian and Natasha were talking in the kitchen when they heard an explosion.

"Jarvis?"

"It is Master Barton in the training room. He used two exploding arrows at the same time."

Natasha groaned. "Fury must have had him do all of the paperwork that he's been holding out on."

"Is he okay?" Lillian asked.

"He probably blasted himself back against the wall." She shrugged. "He'll be fine."

Sure enough, ten minutes later, a grumbling archer came stalking out of the elevator and directly to the freezer to get an ice pack. He placed it on the back of his head. Lillian bit her cheek to keep from laughing.

"How far back?" Natasha asked without looking up from the file in front of her.

"Three months."

"No wonder you've been there all day." Lillian exclaimed. "Why do you wait so long to do it?"

"Paperwork is usually the last thing on my mind after a mission. And then it just gets backed up." He winced as he took a seat.

"I have absolutely no sympathy for you." Natasha said.

"As if you ever do," Clint scoffed.

"Not for stubborn _boys_ who never learn from their mistakes. Are you going to go for three arrows next time?" Natasha folded her arms.

Clint glared at her. "If I damned well please!"

"Okay, children." Lillian intervened. "James will be home from school any moment and he doesn't need to know that Clint hurt himself again."

"What do you mean again?" He said, affronted.

"Clint, you've been known to be a bit reckless sometimes." Lillian said diplomatically.

He opened his mouth to argue but snapped it shut when the elevator opened. Pepper and Tony stepped out.

"How'd the meeting go?" Lillian asked.

"He was asleep through most of it, as usual." Pepper placed her briefcase on the table. "But the DOD is implementing War Machine into some of the missions as a test pilot."

"Congratulations." Lillian told her.

"Where is everyone? I have an announcement." Tony said. Pepper rolled her eyes. "JARVIS can you get Bruce from the lab and Steve from the gym?"

"They are on their way, sir."

The elevator opened to reveal a sulking James.

"What's wrong, bud?" Clint asked as James sat down at the table and put his head in his arms.

"James got in trouble today for talking too much." Amelia placed his backpack on the counter. The boy groaned into his arms. "You know you are going to have to tell your father, James."

"Tell me what?" Steve walked in with a towel around his neck. He kissed Amelia and sat down next to James. He had yet to look up. "James?"

He mumbled into his arms.

"James Matthew, pick your head up." Amelia scolded.

The four year old slowly did as he was told. He looked at his father. "Ms. Mackey sent me to the corner today because I was talking a lot."

Steve raised an eyebrow. "Well, did you learn your lesson not to talk in class?"

James nodded vehemently.

"Just don't do it again. But to make sure you learned your lesson, you will be going to bed early tonight." He ruffled his hair. Suddenly, there was a crack of thunder.

"Uncle Thor!" The young boy shouted before he ran out to the balcony and directly into the arms of the Norse God.

"Young James, it is a pleasure to see you again!"

"You were gone for a really long time, Uncle Thor." James told him.

"Aye, my young friend, but time on Midgard passes much more slowly than time on Asgard. A few days on Asgard could mean a week here on Midgard." Thor explained as they walked into the tower. James noticed a woman following close being. She had a warm smile on her face. James burrowed his face into Thor's shoulder in a sudden rush of shyness.

"My dear friends, you remember Jane Foster?" Thor beckoned her forward.

Everyone stepped forward to welcome her.

Lillian shook her hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I have heard a lot about you."

"Thor has spoken a lot about you as well. Phil was a good man." Jane told her sincerely.

"I appreciate that." Lillian smiled warmly.

Amelia stepped up and introduced herself. She managed to pull James out of Thor's shoulder. "And this is James." Jane held out her hand to him.

"Hello, James."

"Are you and Uncle Thor getting married?" He asked bluntly.

Jane looked a bit taken aback.

"Don't mind him. He's too nosey for his own good." Amelia told her.

No one noticed that Bruce had walked in and put on a kettle until it squealed.

"Sorry." He mumbled.

"Have you slept at all, Bruce?" Natasha asked, concern in her voice.

"A bit." He sipped his tea. "So what's the big news?"

A moping Tony became animated once more. "Ah yes, my announcement!" He said as if he forgot. A lot of eyes rolled in his direction.

"As most of you know, I have a lot of money." He began. Clint resisted the urge to comment sarcastically. "Now you may not know that I own a resort off the coast of Puerto Rico."

"You own an island?" Lillian's jaw dropped.

Pepper pinched the bridge of her nose. "Please don't get him started."

Tony ignored her. "Yes I own an island and it has a beautiful resort on it. We will all be staying there for an entire week!" He put his arms out. When he didn't achieve the desired effect, he dropped his arms and glared at his friends.

"Tony, James can't miss a week of school." Amelia told him.

"I can catch him up." Tony assured her.

Tony looked around for other objections and put a hand out to stop Bruce. "You can put your research off for a week. You need to sleep, buddy."

Bruce just grumbled into his tea.

"Anyone else?" When no one spoke, he bobbed his head. "Fantastic. We leave in two days." Before anyone could object once more, he walked off.

Natasha pointed a knife in Clint's direction. "I blame you, Barton. Most of us can't just pick up and leave for a week."

"Don't worry, Romanoff." Clint said dryly. "I already warned Fury that it was a possibility."

Amelia turned to Steve. "I have that meeting tomorrow." She said quietly.

He nodded. "Everything will be alright. We will handle that together and then we will go on vacation and relax." He rubbed his hands down her arms.

She looked over at James. He had pulled out his coloring homework and began to work on it with Clint. "It's James that I'm worried about." Steve beckoned her to the other side of the room. They sat on the couch, fingers entwined. "It's been two months, Steve. Antonio was the only father that James ever knew before you came along. I tried to shield him as much as possible from his business. The fact of the matter is that Antonio was never an abusive father. He may have beaten me but he never laid a finger on James. He ignored him yes, but there were days when he would actually treat him as if he were his own son. I may be overthinking it but James doesn't even feel bothered by the fact that he's not around anymore."

"James has a lot of things to distract him here." Steve told her after a pause. "I'm sure he does miss Antonio."

"There are so many mistakes that I've made." She said quietly.

"Not as many as mine." Steve held her against his broad chest. "All of the resources that I had available to me and I didn't use one to find you. I gave up and was a coward. That is something I can never make up for."

"The fact that you were so accepting of me and our son, you more than made up for it." She kissed him chastely. "We can only move forward at this point. Starting tomorrow."

"Are you sure you're ready to face him?" Steve asked cautiously.

"He asked for me." Amelia said. "Maybe he has something worthwhile to say. If not, I know that I have you to support me. I just…" She looked down anxiously. "I think that I should go in by myself."

Steve was taken aback. "You think that I'm going to let you by yourself in a room with the man who consistently beat and abused you for five years?"

"I need to do this on my own, Steve. I want you close by but I'm afraid that if he sees you, he will just be angry and I won't hear what he needs to say." Amelia stood her ground. "He will be shackled and the room will be guarded. You have to trust me."

Steve looked at the far wall with a blank look. Finally, he looked at her. "Okay, I will let you go in by yourself, but I will be on the other side of the door. God forbid anything happens to you, Mia…"

"Nothing will happen to me." She reassured him.

"Uncle Clint, you have to color inside the lines!" They heard James giggle.

"Look kid, coloring was never my strong suit."

"Aren't your hands trained to be steady?" Natasha asked suspiciously.

Amelia laughed. "I'm glad that James has such a big family."

"You're a damn coward, Barton!" They heard Natasha screech. Clint was crouched behind a hysterical James. "Come out so I can shove this crayon up your …"

Lillian bravely stepped in front of her. "Natasha, why don't we go tell Fury that we will be out of communication for a week." Natasha continued to glare at Clint, who had a hard time keeping a grin off of his face. Lillian did not dare touch her but stared her down until she relented.

"Let's go." She turned on her heel and headed towards the elevator.

"This is not the first time I've saved you from certain death, Clint. Watch yourself." Lillian told him.

"Nah, she won't do it. We work too well together. I just live to push her to the edge." Clint finally got from behind James.

"One day you are going to push her too far." Bruce pointed out. "And when that day comes, you may be parted with a certain part of your anatomy."

Steve barked in laughter.

Clint threw a crayon at his head as Lillian turned to follow Natasha. The pair disappeared in the elevator.

"Clint, are you actually going to help James or continue to throw crayons like a three year old?" Amelia asked.

"I prefer to think I'm four."

"James is four, and he acts more mature than you do." Amelia told him. Clint looked affronted.

"Well, I never!"

James pulled at his pants leg. "Uncle Clint, I think you're four."

Clint laughed and ruffled his hair. "Thanks bud. I appreciate that." He sat him down and continued to help him with his homework.

Bruce walked off to get as much work done as he could in the next two days. Pepper had a feeling they would have to drag him out of his lab when the time came.


	3. Chapter 3

**Once again, life has officially kicked me in the ass and kept me from writing for you beautiful people. In a poor attempt for an apology, I have a long chapter for you!**

* * *

Amelia clenched her hands together in her lap on the ride to SHIELD the next day. Steve placed a comforting hand on her knee but offered no words of support. He knew that nothing he could say would calm her nerves. Steve felt extremely anxious about the meeting himself.

Clint announced their arrival and Amelia finally released her hands. She stared at the imprints her nails left on her palms and welcomed the sting that left her mind temporarily distracted.

Clint led them through a series of halls before stopping at a door. "This is the main prison." He warned seriously. "They may get rowdy as soon as we enter, especially if they recognize you, Cap."

"Are the prisoners the Avengers put away in there?" Steve asked.

"No, they are kept in a maximum security cell." Clint explained.

"Do you have enemies in there, Clint?"

"No," his face hardened. "I'm never sent to capture criminals." Without another word, he threw open the door and walked through. Steve shook his head but put his arm around Amelia as they followed.

Steve kept his face stoic and faced forward but Amelia felt his grip on her tighten as they made their way past dozens of cells.

"Oh look, Captain America!"

"Come here, Captain. Let me salute ya!"

"Pretty lady you got there, Cap. Mind if I have go?"

A gun shot resonated around the room followed by blood curdling scream.

"One more word out of any of you and you won't just be shot in the shoulder." Clint said with a terrifying calmness.

They made it across the room in silence. Amelia found herself intrigued more than scared about Clint's actions. She knew he was a formidable force but he must have a dark history buried deep within that changed him from the easy going and goofy man that she shared a tower with.

They entered another large room that had multiple numbered doors. Clint led them to room number four and ushered them inside.

Across the small room was a window that opened up into an interrogation room where Antonio was sitting. Amelia felt her heart race at the sight of him. He was wearing a bright orange jumpsuit. His hands were cuffed to the table and his feet to the floor.

"It's a one-way mirror." Clint explained when he noticed her expression. "He can't see you yet."

"You don't have to do this, Amelia." Steve told her. "It's not too late to turn around and go…"

She held her hand out to stop him. "I need to do this." She steeled herself and stepped out of his embrace.

Clint gave him a reassuring smile as he held the door open for Amelia. He followed her close behind.

"Amelia!" Antonio stood as best as he could with the cuffs.

"Sit!" Clint growled. Antonio gave Clint a hateful look but obeyed.

Amelia took a deep breath and sat across from her husband. Clint had already told her that she would lead the meeting and he would merely be there for her protection.

"Hello, Antonio. You wanted to meet with me?"

His face softened but Amelia knew not to trust it. "I have missed you, Amelia."

She felt bile rise in her throat. "My time is limited, Antonio. What is it that you want?"

"Is that how you speak to you husband?" His face turned red. "I gave you everything!"

"You abused me for five years. You consistently threatened my son and I. You kept me away from my family and kept me locked up like a prisoner!" She said, her voice rising.

"If you were so miserable, why didn't you leave?" He smiled at her condescendingly.

She stood, knowing his tricks to break her all too well. "If that is all you wish to say, then I believe this meeting is over. I thought maybe, with the law breathing down your neck, a bit of compassion may have shown itself. But you've once again proven that you were never the man that I originally fell in love with. I will do everything in my power to make sure you are locked away for the rest of your miserable life."

"You actually think these people have something on me?" He scoffed. "Trust me sweetheart, you'll see me again. And make sure you tell that fucking asshole, Captain America the same." He waved menacingly at the glass. "Hello, Captain."

Clint grabbed the back of his head and slammed it against the table. "Okay," He said cheerily. "I think this meeting is over."

Amelia couldn't explain the overwhelming feeling she had when she stepped out of the room. A wave of relief, sadness, and confidence burst forward.

"Feel better?" Steve asked, his face tortured.

She approached him and kissed him gently. "Thank you for allowing me to do that by myself." He nodded quietly.

Clint led them back through the silent jail and almost made it back to the car before they heard a bark of "Barton!"

Clint sighed heavily. "Dammit." He turned to face his boss. "Good afternoon, Director. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

Nick's good eye narrowed dangerously. "Care to explain why every time you come here, there's more work for the medical staff?"

"It's a flesh wound!"

"Get your ass back in here, Barton, and do the paperwork." Nick growled before turning on his heel and marching back into the building.

"What is he even doing here?" Clint grumbled. "Take the car. I'll meet you guys back at the tower."

Lillian was sitting on the couch with James in her lap when Steve and Amelia walked in.

"Where's Clint?" Lillian asked.

Amelia bit her lip to keep from smiling. "He's doing some more paperwork." She said. "What are you two doing?"

"Aunt Lily is reading me Harry Potter, Mommy!" James said excitedly.

"Harry Potter?" Steve asked.

Lillian and Amelia merely looked at him.

"Maybe you should be the one reading it to him, Steve." Lillian got up and handed him the book. "Just remember that it's a fictional novel." Steve looked confused but took Lillian's spot on the couch and began to read with James.

"Where is everyone?" Amelia asked as the two women walked into the kitchen.

"Tony, Nat, and Bruce are in the lab as usual. Pepper is in the office and Jane took Thor shopping for normal clothes." Lillian took a water bottle from the fridge and took a swig. "I was actually going to see if you wanted to go shopping with me. I could use some clothes for our vacation."

"That sounds like a great idea." Amelia said. "Think we can pry Pepper out of her office and Natasha out of the lab? Make it a girl's day?"

"We can try." Lillian said. "I'm not sure how much luck we'll have."

Pepper was easy to convince, and as the three women entered the lab and witnessed utter chaos, they knew it would be even easier to sell the idea to Natasha.

Natasha was sitting on one of the lab tables with a look of annoyance on her face as she watched Tony dance around a fire and Bruce walking around in a circle, mumbling to himself.

"What the hell is going on in here?" Pepper shouted, taking charge.

Tony and Bruce immediately stopped and jumped at the sight of them. Natasha turned calmly, as if she knew they were there the whole time (something that the three women knew was most likely the case).

"Hi sweetheart!" Tony shouted panicky. "Just some science…"

"Tony accidentally set his experiment on fire." Natasha told them nonchalantly. "He and Bruce were working on a new toy and this is what happened." She gestured to the fire. "Neither of them have stopped long enough to use the fire extinguisher that Dummy is holding."

Tony spun around to face his robot. "What are you waiting for? Put it out!"

"I don't even know why I come down here anymore." Pepper sighed in defeat.

"We just came down to see if you wanted to go shopping with us." Lillian said slowly, adjusting to the scene in front of her.

Natasha jumped down from the table. "Please, let's go."

The four women took the elevator to the street level and walked through the Stark Industries lobby. They decided to walk around downtown Manhattan and visit various shops.

"What did Clint do this time?" Natasha asked as they walked into a department store. Amelia told them the story.

Natasha shook her head. "That's the third time this year."

Amelia was taken aback. "He's shot three people in that jail?"

"He's not really allowed in there." Natasha said as if it weren't a big deal.

"Anyway," Pepper halted the conversation and held up an emerald green bikini. It had gold embellishments on the bottoms and a gold broche settled in the center of the top. "What do you think?"

"You will look amazing in that. It goes so well with your hair." Amelia said. "Tony won't know what to do."

By the time the women left an hour later, they had bought swimsuits for themselves and the men, as well has a few outfits to wear while there. Amelia bought a baby blue bikini, Natasha found a purple and black bikini, while Lillian decided to keep it simple with a white bikini.

"We should get some lunch." Lillian said. "The boys can take care of themselves for a bit."

"I'm not entirely sure of that." Natasha said. "But I'm definitely hungry. What about that Thai place around the corner?"

They all agreed and headed towards the restaurant. Once they were seated and had ordered drinks, Amelia turned towards Lillian.

"So, has Clint made his move yet?"

"You know as well as I do that he hasn't." Lillian said without looking up from her menu. "Nor will he ever."

"You don't honestly believe that, do you?" Pepper asked.

Lillian looked up and sighed. "I'm Phil's sister. I can see the restraint in his eyes every time he looks at me. I know he wants it just as bad as I do but until he can get over that, there will never be a relationship."

"Instead of playing around, why don't you two sit down and have an actual conversation about it? You don't need to wait around for him to make a move." Natasha told her.

"You are absolutely right." Amelia agreed. "When we get back to the tower, that's exactly what you should do."

"Why are you all so invested in my love life?" Lillian said in exasperation.

"We just want to see the two of you happy." Pepper said honestly. "Our next target is Natasha and Bruce."

For the first time, the three women saw a look of surprise flash across Natasha's face. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh my god! Natasha are you blushing?" Amelia exclaimed. Natasha's face immediately became stoic and her hand flexed.

"Hey now, Natasha." Lillian said. "We are just messing with you."

"I know, I am just angry at myself…for being so hard to read." She said through clenched teeth.

Pepper was amazed at how far Natasha had come, since she first met her, to admit something like that to them. She was beginning to trust them and she knew that it must have been terribly difficult.

"We're family, Natasha." Pepper said kindly. "We are able to notice subtle differences. For example, the way you look at Bruce, and that you are so incredibly supportive of his work. You genuinely want him to succeed because you understand what this success will mean to him. You can relate to him on a personal level, more than you've been able to relate with anyone, Clint included."

Natasha was shocked. "You could notice all of that?"

Pepper sat back, proud of herself. "Like I said, we're family."

"That project may be a bit more difficult." Lillian pointed out. "Bruce can be so shy sometimes."

"Please let's stop talking about Bruce." Natasha told them.

"No you're right, one project at a time." Amelia said. "This vacation is all about Clint and Lillian."

"Actually, fair warning that is one of Tony's goals this weekend." Pepper admitted.

"One of?" Lillian looked around in alarm.

"He hasn't divulged his master plan to me yet. He just wants Clint to think that he manipulated him into this vacation. Tony is not a stupid as he acts most of the time. If you speak to Clint before we leave, then Tony won't have a chance to interfere. You want it to be on your terms, not his." Pepper said.

"Oh fantastic." Lillian put her head in her hands.

"Amelia, what happened today with Antonio?" Natasha asked, changing the subject.

"It was same old Antonio." Amelia shrugged. "He was being horrible and then Clint slammed his face onto the metal table. That was a bit satisfying. But in all honesty, I have closure now. I thought that maybe he would atone for his sins but he didn't and that's not my problem anymore. I'm ready to move on with my new family." She smiled at her best friends.

Pepper squeezed her hand reassuringly and the conversation moved on to trivial matters. After lunch, they decided to finally head back to the tower, hoping that it was still standing.

Surprisingly enough, when they walked into the common area, it was relatively quiet. James was coloring quietly on the floor in front of the couch where Steve was still sitting, reading quietly to himself. Bruce and Tony had left the lab and were in the kitchen, eating omelets and scheming.

Clint appeared behind them in the elevator. He stopped suddenly and stared at the scene. "Have I gone deaf? Are my hearing aids working? What is happening?"

Steve looked up with a distraught look on his face. "There are trolls in the dungeon and Hermione is nowhere to be found." Lillian collapsed in laughter.

"I literally do not have a good answer to that." Tony said from across the room.

Amelia walked up to him and gently removed the book from his hands. "How about we take a break love?"

"That was probably a mistake." Lillian admitted between breaths. Pepper nudged her and shooed her in the direction of Clint, who had made his way over to the fridge.

"Clint," His head popped up from the fridge. His finger was in his mouth and his face resembled that of a child with their hand stuck in a cookie jar. In his other hand was a jar of peanut butter.

"That belongs to you know, Birdbrain. And who even puts peanut butter in the fridge?" Tony snorted.

"Can I have a word with you?" Lillian cut off Clint's retort to Tony.

"Sure." He closed the fridge and the pair headed up to their rooftop.

The afternoon sun beat down on them and she closed her eyes to soak in the warmth.

"Are you okay?" Clint asked cautiously.

She sat down on the ledge and beckoned him to join her.

"I feel like I'm in high school." She laughed nervously. "I have realized that I need to be the person to initiate whatever this is that we have between us." She looked at him. "I see the way you look at me. And I see how you have to restrain yourself from even touching me most of the time. You tease, I tease, but nothing is happening. The fact of the matter is that we aren't in high school, Clint. And I can't wait around for you to decide if I'm worth betraying Phil for."

Clint's face was expressionless and Lillian held her breath.

"You have to understand…" Lillian closed her eyes, the rejection crushing her heart. Clint grabbed her hand. "Look at me, Lillian." When she opened them, she saw honest surprise on his face. "Why do you look like I just killed your dog? I didn't finish speaking. I was saying that you have to understand that Phil was one of my only friends. I see him in you every single fucking day and it kills me. It did feel like I was betraying him with my feelings for you but to be honest, I've never felt this way about anyone before. The more I think about, I think that maybe Phil would be happy for us."

"Really?" Lillian asked him. Clint tenderly kissed her in response. She wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss.

They pulled away from each other. "I've been wanting to do that for a while."

"I have been told I was pretty amazing." She said with a laugh. Clint rolled his eyes at her. They sat on the roof until the sun set that night, holding hands the whole time.

* * *

**Vacation next chapter.**

**I deserve any hate you guys wanna sling at me for disappearing for years. But I still love you all!**


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